Stand by Who?
by JaynaConnor
Summary: A girl is knocked unconcious and dreams about the movie Stand by me. However, her appearance drastically changes the story
1. Unconcious

1Jayna stepped up to the plate. Her hands tightened around the baseball bat and she expertly loosened and tightened them again, letting the grip work it's magic. She got into her stance and made sure her helmet was on straight. Her legs stayed parallel to the diamond and she pulled her arms back as far as she could, to give herself enough force for when the ball came. A bead of sweat fell down from her forehead and dropped onto the gravel covered white plate.

The ball came fast and hard, zooming straight out in front of her. She swung the bat with all her might. Her eyes had closed instinctively and her whole upper body had pivoted with the movement of her legs. There was, however, no familiar crack of wood and leather meeting at 70 mph. There was nothing, just air whooshing by.

"STTTTTRRIIIKE!" called out the umpire from behind her. She heard the catcher snicked as he threw back the ball.

"Nice miss, Drake. God, you're so bad at this, it'll be a miracle if they let any girls play next year, you stupid cunt," he whispered to her as he crouched back down.

Jayna's eyes shot over to him, fury seething out of them. If looks could kill... She closed her eyes and tried to calm down. She had to make this hit, the team was depending on it. They were depending on her. She was the best hitter on the team, despite what the catcher said. She took a deep breath and go into her stance again. This time the ball made contact.

Crack! That lovely sound she knew so well, which always meant run, run, run! So she did, without even thinking. She got all the way to first base before she knew that the umpire was shouting "Foul! Foul ball! Strike two!" The ball had gone left, deep left and out of the field. Some small child had picked it up and was throwing it back to the pitcher. Then pitcher caught it and for a split second made eye contact with Jayna. He smirked. Then, in a swift motion that looked like he was brushing something off his chin, he dragged a finger across his throat.

She groaned and turned back to head back to home. She had just picked up her bat when the coach of the other team called a time out. Jayna leaned on the bat and surveyed the scene. She had a runner on second and third, both itching to get home. The score was in favour to the other team, 18 to 17. It was the last inning. There were 2 outs. They needed Jayna to hit her boys home.

The other team's coach talked to the pitched and the catcher, who had just jogged up from behind the plate. The coach was talking quick whisper; you could see the boys straining to hear every word. He pointed vaguely in Jayna's direction. She looked around slightly and saw her coach walking towards her. She took a few paces towards him, not wanting to stray too far from the base.

"Jayna, are you all right?" He asked quickly.

"Yeah, I'm totally fine. It's those guys who seem troubled," she said, jerking her thumb at the other team's pitcher and company.

Her coach chuckled. "I know, you've never let me down and I know you never will. But Jay, hon, I know there's a first time for everything, but don't let this be the first, ok?"

She looked up at him and grinned. "No problem, Ted," she said confidently. He patted her on the shoulder and walked back to the dugout. She watched him go then turned to the pitcher's mound and shouted, "Come on, I haven't got all day!" The crowed laughed at this and she smiled politely at the other team's coach. He looked at her in disgust and continued talking rapidly to his pitcher and catcher.

The umpire looked at his watch and shouted, "Play ball!" The coach looked up and talked even faster. The boys looked even more intense now. "Coach," shouted the ump, "Get off the pitch!" The coach obeyed but continued to give his players hand signals as he left.

Jayna just smiled. Now that she had hit on of the pitches, she knew she could hit another, no problem. She feel, yet again, into her stance. The pitcher was taking cues from the catcher, shaking his head until he saw the right pitch, then he nodded. His left leg lifted off the ground and he leaned slightly to his left. His hands, once together cradling the ball, separated; the left making a graceful arc down towards his left thigh. The right one pulled back with the ball and made a complete circle. As it neared the original position, the ball suddenly shot out of it.

She didn't have to duck. She only had time to see white and flecks of red zoom towards her face. She didn't have time to react. She just watched it. It was like slow-motion. It didn't even hurt, more like hitting your funny bone. Not really pain, just that awkward feeling. Then, all was black and it felt like she was falling for an eternity.


	2. Castle Rock

1I opened my eyes and groaned. There was a perfect blue sky above me, with fluffy clouds and not a hint of ugliness anywhere. I tried to sit up. I couldn't move. _I've died,_ I thought frantically. _I've died and this is heaven! Ohcraaapppp. Wait, this doesn't make sense. How didIdie?_I forced myself into a sitting position and looked around. I was at the edge of some sort of town. There was a chain bridge in front of me and a sign.

I struggled to my feet and walked over to the sign. It was a big one, one of those signs you see when you enter a town.I read whattown this was andnearly passed out again. That couldn't be right, that town was fictional, or at least I thought it was. What the hell am I doing here? I touched the sign to make sure it was real, and yes, sure enough, I touched the rough wood. I traced the letters with my fingers. They were painted in black and indented into the wood. C-A-S-T-L-E R-O-C-K. But it wasn't possible.

I walked across the bridge into the town. It was all so...perfect. There were white house on either side of the road and flowers blooming everywhere. Then I saw a convenience store and walked over to the glass. I stood and started at myself. There I was, Jayna Drake, wearing a fitted dark blue flared jeans. My red shirt was one that was totally in at the moment, you know, those long ones that fit very well.Kind of like a wife-beater shirt.My dark brown hair fell over my shoulders and I gasped. It was perfectly straight. I always straighten my hair as it's naturally wavy but not now. It just went straight.

Then I realized that the people in the store were watching me. Not staring at me, but looking at me with what seemed like disgust. Notorious for being an asshole, I just smiled and flipped them off. That really got the shock to appear on their faces. My smile broadened. I was about to book it out of there when a couple of boys inside started laughing at what I did. I squinted to see who there were but then the manager of the store came out and started cussing me off, so I ran away laughing.

I was a while before I realized that I was walking down a dirt path. I looked up at the nearest house and it looked very familiar. There was a big white house, with a porch that stretched all along the first floor. The porch was held up by wooden mesh. The front lawn was quite green, save for some yellow patches here and there. The driveway was paved and there was an old car sitting there. Well, old by my standards. Considering what I'd seen today, it must have been pretty new, that car. Shit, we really weren't in Kansas any more, Toto.

I figured, fuck it, if it's really the house I think it is, then I'll go in and say hi to old Verno. So I started towards the front door. It was really strange, walking up to Vern Tessio's house like this. I wondered if I really was in the movie and if I was, I must look really strange right now. A girl wearing, what would look like, a boy's clothing at the time, with dark long black hair and a light brown complexion.

I got to the front step and glanced around, wondering if maybe Vern was home. What do I say when I knock on the door? What if Vern answers? What the hell do I do then? I suddenly found myself face to face with the front door. I stared at the peeling white paint and kept thinking about what I should say. I raised my hand and was about to knock when the door swung open and there stood two boys, about the ages of 17 or 18. They stopped dead when they saw me, my hand still raised to knock on a door that was no longer there. Welooked at each other for what seemed like an eternity. They both wore pegged jeans and that were pulled down over black motorcycle boots shoes. The one with black hair wore a white shirt and the blonde one, who seemed scrawnier, had on a sleeveless grey. He had a very worried expression on his face, like he wanted more than anything to be elsewhere.

"Hi," I said, in a very high pitched voice. I cleared my throat and said in my normal voice, "Hi, my name's Jayna. I'm a friend of Vern's. Is he in?"

The boys just stared at me. They were quite tall too. I was an average 5'6 for a 16 year old but they stood at least 4 inches taller than me. I smiled up at them. Then the black haired one smiled back.

"Hey, uh, Jayna did you say? I'm Billy, Vern's brother and that's my friend Charlie Hogan. You probably seen us around town," He said with a backwards glance at Charlie.

Holy shit, it was real! Without even thinking, I reached out and touched Billy Tessio's face, just to see if it was real. Yep, it was. He gave me a strange look but smiled and took my hand in his. "Easy, baby," he said. Charlie laughed. I yanked my hand away. These guys were cobras! They were the enemy of the four boys this movie was about.

"Ugh, gross. Don't touch me, you filthy douche bag," I said and took a step backwards. They looked at each other and laughed. They stepped through the door, forcing me to step back even further. I tried to make it look casual and kept walking towards the railing of the porch and jumped up to sit on it. They both leaned against the wall of the house, facing me.

Charlie stared at me. "What?" I asked.

"I ain't never saw a girl wear pants or a shirt like that," he said, sizing me up.

"Yeah, well it's all the rage where I come from," turning my attention back to Billy. "So is Vern here or not, we have to do a...project...for school together." Both boys laughed again.

"It's summer. Why would yous be doin a project during summer?" Billy asked. Shit, he was right. I should have remember that too. I've watched this movie so many times, I know the words by heart. I laughed nervously.

"Heh heh, you guys are clever. Ok, I need to talk to him about something. It's personal. So, if you don't mind..." I made a hand gesture to signify calling Vern. The boys chuckled.

"What happend, he knock you up or somethin?" Billy asked, lighting up a cigarette. He offered me one and I took it. He lit it for me.

"Yeah, stupid, that's exactly what he did. Look, I'm going to just guess that he's not here. When you next see him, tell him a girl name Jayna is looking for him. You got that, or do you want me to draw you a picture?" I said, as I slid off the rail and started to walk down the steps.

"Hey, where you goin?" asked Chalie. "Away," I grunted and kept walking. I had reached the end of the drive way when I heard footsteps hurry up from behind me. Charlie walked on one side and Billy was on the other side of me. I stopped and looked at them both. I flicked my cigarette away.

"Ok, what do you want?" Now I was getting kind of annoyed. I hate when guys are too forward.

"Well, we was goin to go hang out with our friend and wondered if you wanna go with us," said Blondie. I stared at him for a second then laughed.That meant Ace Merrill and Eyeball Chambers would be there.They looked confused so I tried to stop.

"No, no, that's ok, I have things to do. You wouldn't understand. Girl things. You know," I said, trying to make them uncomfortable. Girls talking about their periods and such always makes a guy want to leave."Plus, I have some friends here I'm looking for. So, thanks but no thanks." I stepped past them. I needed to find the tree house where the boys were in the movie.

"Well, ok, but if you change your mind, we're goin to the Mellow Tiger," called Billy. I waved my hand without turning around and started walking down the dirt path back to the town. The boys must have taken another route because I didn't hear them following me.

Then it hit me. If I was in the movie, then this was the part when Vern was under the porch. Charlie Hogan and Billy Tessio come out of the house and start talking about Ray Brower. Shit! He's at the house! He's under the porch. He heard me the whole time. I turned and ran back to the Tessio house. Ihurried over to the porch and started hissing out "Vern! Vern!" But no answer came.

Finally, I found an opening and crawled under the porch.


	3. Looking around town

1"Vern?" I hissed. "Vern, are you down here?" I crouched down and crawled under the porch. My hands dug into the cold sand and I shivered. It was quite dark under the house, darker than it was it the movie. I started crawling forwards and my hand landed in one of the holes Vern had made looking for his pennies. I laughed out loud, thinking about a young Jerry O'Connell staring up at his "older brother" in the movie and having sand fall in his face.

I made a complete circle of the porch before I realized that Vern in fact, was not under there. He must have run out when the other boys and myself had left. That meant he was probably running to the tree house. But what the hell would he be telling them? He didn't know about the whole body thing. Maybe he wasn't telling them anything at all. After all, he was only 12 years old.

I crawled out from under the porch and walked to the dirt road. I looked left then right. Straight ahead of me was miles upon miles of corn stalks. I shielded my eyes and looked out onto the corn. The sun caught it at such an angle that nothing I'd ever seen looked to beautiful. I stood for a second and watched it.

I turned and started to walk back towards the town, not really sure where to go to find the tree house. The town was busier now. Not that busy, seeing as how I'm a New York girl, but quiet busy. From what I saw in the movie, this town had a lot more people than it let on.

I walked down what I assumed was the main street in town and tried to remember everything I saw. There were mostly stores here, the kind you would find in the late fifties/ early sixties. You know, barber shops, tailors, shoe stores, bars, restaurants, the works. Where was that tree house in the movie. I thought for a second then remembered it was on some sort of grassy hill type thing. Gordie walked up after getting his magazine from the town.

I stopped and looked up at the nearest hill. Nada. I kept walking, fixing my gaze above the town. Then I saw it. A little wooden shack about 8 feet high at the top of a grassy slope, about a block or two away. It was crudely meshed together, with random pieces of wood sticking out in odd places.

I continued to walk towards it. I stared up at the amazing tree house, wondering if the boys were playing cards like in the movie or if Vern had told them about something else. Whatever they were doing, I would soon be in there talking to them. It seemed like such a strange notion, talking to River Phoenix, Wil Wheaton, Corey Feldman and Jerry O'Connell. Seriously, what the hell am I doing in 1960?

That's when I walked straight into a walking mound of flesh. I was knocked backwards onto my butt. I hadn't even been looking forward. My eyes had just been concentration of trying to see the inside of the tree house from the street. I looked up and my jaw dropped.

Gordon LaChance stood in front of me. He was wearing that red stripped shit he wore in the movie with those faded blue jeans. His brown hair was parted on the left and obviously brushed down. His eyes were exactly like people always describe them: soft, doe eyes. He stood there, obviously shaken. I didn't blame him. When I was twelve, I got scared just looking at older kids.

I grinned up at him. "Hi Gordie." I said. He just stood there, staring at me. I realized then that I was still sitting on the ground and pushed myself up. He wasn't as short as I thought he would be, the top of his head being level with my nose. I smiled. "My name's Jayna," I said.

"Hi," he said nervously. "Do I know you?" I thought for a millisecond before answering.

"No, you don't. I just moved here. Uh, your parents. Yeah, my parents know your parents and they just moved so they told me to come find you in your tree house. You know, to hang out with you and your buds." I nodded proudly with this lie. He continued to stare at me.

"Ok, well!" I said, trying to change the subject. "Where are you headed now?"

His expression softened a little and he started walking. I walked beside him.

"I'm going to my house for lunch. My mom always makes me a cheese sandwich. I love them. Say, do you want to come over for lunch? My folks won't care, seeing as how they already know you," he asked. I smiled.

"Sure, I'd love to," I said. We continued to walk and talk.

"What are your parent's names? Maybe I know them?" he questioned. I laughed.

"I don't think so. Their names are, I dunno, John and Mary."

"Oh. Where did they move?" he asked.

"Just a little ways away from where you live."

"I didn't see any for sale signs," he said this mostly to himself. I thought fast.

"Yeah, that's because, well, we bought it right from the people that live there. They moved right out and we moved right in," What a lie, eh? He seemed satisfied.

"Hey, Jayna, how old are you?"

"16."

"Really?"

"Yeah"

"Wow! Hey, with you around, maybe Ace and Eyeball won't bug us so fucking much." I turned to him.

"Hey, you watch your mouth. You're only 12 for Christ's sake! Who taught you language like that anyway?" He frowned.

"I dunno, we all say fuck and shit and damn and hell. I dunno if anyone really taught it to me." I shrugged.

"Ah well, now I won't feel bad when I swear around you lot. That's ok, right? If I hang out with you and your friends?"

"Yeah, of course you can. They guys will think it's really cool if we hang out with a 16-year-old girl. Hey, what's up with the clothes you're wearing, Jayna?"

"Oh, uh, these? Well, back where I come from, this is how people dress."

"Oh. Where do you come from?"

"Ah, New York."

"Really? That's cool! Hey, we're here."

We stopped in front of a very old and sad looking house. The paint was white but chipped. It looked like it had been well maintained, but the owners just recently gave up on it. The house seemed to have a sagging, defeated look to it.

From the front lawn, I could see a man and a woman out in the backyard. The woman hung up the laundry monotonously and the man has hoeing the garden with no expression on his face. I shuddered. They were like that because of Denny.

"Come on," said Gordie. "I'll fix you a sandwich and we can eat them out here. I don't like being inside my house much. It's pretty sad in there since..." He trailed off. I didn't bother to question him further because I knew what he was thinking. His face had suddenly gone from happy-go-lucky to saddest kid in the world. I put my arm around his shoulders.

"Come on, Gordie, let's go get those sandwiches. Hey, maybe we could sneak some chocolate into them or something." His face brightened.

"You put chocolate into sandwiches?" He sounded amazing. Jeeze, kids didn't know much about food in the 60s.

"Course. You can put anything in a sandwich."

We walked into the house, passing the dining room and the living room. I remembered the flashback that Gordie has, with John Cusak playing Denny. Weird, man. We walked into the kitchen and there, sitting on a white plate, was the world's saddest sandwich. It was white bread with the crust cut off and a single sliver of cheese was wedged into the middle. I almost started to cry.

"Gordie, you are not eating that for lunch. Get some bread. I'll make us some good sandwiches." I started rummaging through his fridge, pulling out cold meats and condiments. I had some cold chicken and salami, mustard, mayonnaise and peanut butter.

"Ok, kid, what do you want?" He stared at me.

"I dunno, cheese, I guess." I sighed.

"Gordie, come on. Ok, look, I'm going to have chicken and mayonnaise. How about you have cheese, salami and mustard?" He looked confused, but nodded. I threw the sandwiches together and quickly washed the dishes. I didn't want his mom yelling at him.

We took the three sandwiches out onto the front lawn and started munching. Gordie finished his first and looked longingly at the cheese one. I handed it over and he gobbled it up.

"Boy, you sure were hungry. And your mom only makes you one sandwich a day?" I asked. He grinned.

"I usually make an extra one for myself. But they're never as good as my moms. Well, until I had yours. Those were amazing! How did you do it?" I grinned back at him.

"A woman's touch, my little grasshopper." He laughed. I didn't think he got it, but whatever. We sat in silence for a couple of minutes. Think of the strangest feeling you've ever had. Multiply that by 10 and that's how I was feeling right then. I could not believe I was sitting next to Wil Wheaton while he played Gordie LaChance. I mean, he didn't know he was Wil Wheaton. On a scale of one to ten, this was completely fucked up.

Gordie suddenly got to his feet. He stretched and yawned. "I'm going to go back to the tree house now. They guys are all probably there. So, you want to come with me?" I smiled up at him.

"Sure thing, Gordo," I said as I got to my feet. We started to walk away from the house when he suddenly stopped dead. I turned to him.

"What's up?" I asked. He just looked past me so I waved a hand in front of his face. He snapped out of his daze and gazed at me.

"I have to go back to get something," he said and turned and ran back.

"What did you forget?" I called after him.

"My hat!"

I stood there stunned for a second, wondering why he went back to get the hat Denny gave him. Maybe it's some wacko movie instinct thing.

Gordie came running back wearing the navy blue New York Yankees hat. It was obviously too big for him but he wore it proudly. I smirked.

"Nice hat," I said. He looked sheepish.

"My brother gave it to me. He's dead," he said flatly. I nodded.

"I know. Denny was his name. He died in a jeep accident. I was sorry to hear that Gordie." I put my arm around his shoulder and gave him half a hug. He sighed.

"It's ok. It was a year ago, I'm ok now," he muttered.

"C'mon," I said. "Let's go find your friends."

We started towards the town, going by the main road. We had just passed some old store when a blue pick up truck slowed beside us.

"Right here's cool," called a voice behind the truck.

Chris Chambers jumped out of the back and thanked the driver. He turned to Gordie and threw his arm around his friend.

"Gordo!" he said happily.

"Hey Chris, this is Jayna. She's new in town," Gordie said, pointing to me. I smiled at Chris.

"Hey," I said. Chris took his arm off of Gordie's shoulder and suddenly looked quite shy.

"Hi," he muttered, looking at his feet. Chris Chambers was every bit as attractive in real life as he is in the movie. River Phoenix, that is. He was tall, taller than me by an inch or so and had these deep blue eyes that just looked right through you. I wanted to hug him but I restrained myself.

"My parents just moved here," I lied again. "Is it ok if I hang out with you and Gordie until I make some friends my age?" He looked surprised at being asked such a direct question, but it seemed to loosen him up a bit. He smiled at me.

"Yeah, that'd be cool. Just watch out for Teddy. Teddy DuChamp is a real asshole. Hey, Ace and Eyeball won't rip on us so much if we've got an older girl here," he added thoughtfully. Gordie smiled slyly at me and I laughed. Chris looked confused until Gordie explain that's exactly what he said to me.

The three of us walked down the street to the tree house. Both boys walked together and kept asking me questions about New York and such. I tried to be as accurate as possible, seeing as how I'm not born for another 29 years.

We passed the spot where Chris and Gordie shot the gun when Chris suddenly stopped. He looked at Gordie with a puzzled expression on his face.

"Are we supposed to do something right here?" he asked. Gordie thought for a second.

"No, I don't think so." I smiled. I didn't know whether or not I should interfere with the events but I figured, fuck it.

"Chris, you and Gordie accidently shoot a gun here. I guess you forgot to bring it," I said, laughing slightly. They both stared at me. So I continued.

"Yeah, Chris you let Gordie hold the gun and then he pulls the trigger because you said it wasn't loaded. Turns out you were wrong and it fires a bullet. You both scream and run like the wind. Then you, Gordo, get angry at Chris and he says he's sorry and you guys skin it and you're friends again." Ok, this is really weird now.

They looked at each other then looked at me. I started laughing.

"How do you know this?" asked Chris. I put on a very whimsical face and said: "Chris, it's one of the great mysteries of life. Just forget about it, don't worry." I continued walking down the street and they followed me. I sighed.

"Guys come on, I was just kidding. I just made that up. It didn't really happen. Just forget about it, ok?" I said turning to them. I heard a door open behind me to my left at the same moment Chris opened his mouth to speak. Instead of words, his mouth just hung open and his eyes widened with fear and shock. I looked at Gordie and his face had a similar expression on it. Both were looking behind me.

Before I could turn around, I heard Eyeball Chambers say:

"Hey girls, where you goin?"


	4. The fight

1I whipped around. Eyeball and Ace were supposed to be about 17 or 18 but they looked at least 20. Ace's cold eyes sent shivers down my spine. I could see immediately he hadn't taken a liking to me. His eyes quickly looked me up and down, seeing if I was really worth the trouble. Apparently I wasn't.

Eyeball's eyes didn't really say much. I guess he usually waited for Ace to make the first move and he would follow suit. They both walked past me and Ace snatched Gordie's hat off his head as he strutted by him. Gordie spun around.

"Hey man, my brother gave me that! Give it back, c'mon!" Gordie made feeble attempts to grab the hat, which Ace now held over his head. He sort of smiled, with the cigarette hanging out of his mouth.

"And now you're giving it to me," he sneered. Suddenly Chris spoke up.

"You're a real asshole, you know that?" He said quietly. For a split second, Ace looked happily challenged. Then he went back to looking resentful. He passed the hat to Eyeball who put it backwards on his head.

"Ooh. Your brother's not very polite, Eyeball," he said calmly, flicking away his cigarette. Chris stood his ground but seemed to shrink slightly.

"Now Christopher, I know you didn't mean to insult my friend," said Eyeball in a mock baby voice. Gordie and I stood transfixed. I knew what was going to happen and yet I couldn't seem to be able to movie my arms or legs. Or speak, for that matter.

"I know he didn't mean it to insult me. That's why I'm going to give him the opportunity to take it back," said Ace advancing on Chris. There was a pause for almost a second in which I guess Chris was supposed to apologize but didn't. Ace grabbed Chris and slammed him down on the sidewalk.

"Oh shit," Chris breathed.

"Take it back, kid," Ace said, putting all his weight on the smaller boy. I couldn't take it anymore. I snapped out of my trance.

"Hey John!" I called to Ace. He looked up at me, probably not used to being called his birth name. "Catch!" And with that, I kicked him in the face with all my strength. It was a good kick too. My right leg is the stronger one and it landed right one his mouth. It must have hurt him because my foot was sure smarting.

He fell backwards off of Chris and everyone (minus Ace, who was lying on the ground holding his mouth which had started to bleed) stared at me. Then I yelled the only smart thing I could think of.

"Run!" Chris leaped off the ground and the three of us started to run like the wind. Behind me I heard Ace scream "Get them!" and footsteps closing in fast.

"Run faster!" I screamed to the boys. We picked up speed. I started thinking up an escape route. It was quite a task seeing as how I didn't know the town at all. Plus, the older boys were less than a block behind us so they could probably see every move we made.

Chris was on my right, and Gordie was on my left. The three of us turned a corner and found ourselves beside a super market. Well, a super market in 1960. It was kind of like one you have today except, well, it was much cleaner. I grabbed Gordie and Chris by the elbows and directed them into the store.

There was a little bell that tinkled when you opened the door. I didn't bother to look and see if Ace and Eyeball were following us because a few seconds later, the bell tinkled again. We ran through the aisles, dodging shoppers who shook their heads in disgust at us hooligans.

There were tables set up with fruits and vegetables in bowls on them. What really intrigued me about the tables was that they were all covered by table cloths that touched the ground. A good temporary hiding spot.

We rounded another corner and I, once again, shoved Gordie and Chris by their elbows under the nearest table. I was very dark under there so I found their face with my hand and pressed a finger to their lips. I felt Chris nod and Gordie just panted.

Suddenly we heard footsteps running towards us. I held my breath as they slowed near our table. Then they stopped all together, right beside the table we were crouched under. I swear to god, I stopped breathing for a good 2 minutes while they stood there.

"Where the fuck'd they go?" I head Eyeball say between pants. There was a spitting sound and a small splat. Ace must have spit up blood.

"They must have gone that way. Those kids arefuckin dead. Who the fuck was the girl anyway?" Another spitting and splat sound. I felt around in the dark until I found Chris and Gordie's hands and I squeezed them. They squeezed back.

"Eyeball, I'm gonna murder your little faggot brother. I'm gonna break both the Lachance kid's arms. And the girl, I dunno what I'm going to do to her yet, but it won't be pretty." Their voices started to get farther and farther and I noticed that they had started to walk off.

I let go of the boys' and rubbed my sweaty hand on my jeans. I felt for their faces in the dark and held one in each of my hands.

"Listen," I said in a hurried whisper. "Do you both know where the door is?"

"Yeah," Chris whispered. Gordie just nodded.

"Ok, swell, that takes care of one door. Hey, do you know if there's a back door to this place?" I asked quickly.

"There is. I know where it is, do you Chris?"

"Naw, I never come into this place. You know, never have enough dough," he said, without a trace of shame.

"Ok, whatever. Gordie, Chris, I want you both to run to that door and..." I was cut short by Gordie.

"We can't get out that way. There's a lock on the door and it needs a key. If we went down there it would be a dead end. We have to leave through the front door."

"Fuck! Ok, I'm going to go out and see if the coast is clear," I said.

"What? You can't!" Chris said a little loudly.

"Shh, why not?"

"Because if they see you, they'll kill you," whispered Gordie.

"Yeah, but imagine what they'd do to you. I'll tap my foot if it's clear and we'll make a dash for the door, crystal?"

"Yeah," they both said.

"All righty, I'll see you cats on the flip side," I said and slid out from under the table.

Ace and Eyeball where nowhere in sight. The door was straight ahead of us. The only problems were that there were five orsix tables blocking the exit so we would have to dodge around them. We were right in the corner, with two walls of shelves blocking the view of two-thirds of the supermarket. Ace and Eyeball could be right around the corner and we wouldn't know it until it was too late.

Oh well, we'd have to risk it. I tapped my foot. The two boys appeared beside me. They looked around nervously and then set their eyes on the door.

"Looks like we're going to have to dodge the tables," said Gordie. I nodded.

"On the count of three?" asked Chris.

"One..." I said quietly.

"Two..."said Chris.

"Three!" We started sprinting towards the door. We slid under tables, pulling the cloths with us. Baskets of fruits flew everywhere but we didn't stop. Chris actually succeeded in jumping clean over a table and landing like a cat. For the most part we just tried to avoid the tables but in some cases it was just easier to go under or over.

As we neared the door, I looked to my left. There, in the frozen goods section, stood Eyeball and Ace. Ace was leaning against the wall with his eye closed and a packed of ice on his mouth. Eyeball on the other hand was looking straight at us. His mouth opened in surprise and his eyes went wide. He grabbed Ace and pointed to us. Ace's eyes shot open and he threw down the ice. He pushed himself off the wall and bolted towards us.

We reached the door and slammed it behind us. Gordie and I started to run away but Chris reached over to a stand that was outside the front of the store and grabbed a piece of lumber. The door hand was one that was shaped like a backwards "C" so he slid it through the gap and stood back.

Ace and Eyeball slammed into the door and tried pulling it open to no avail. Gordie and I stopped running and cautiously walked back to Chris. He stood smiling triumphantly while Ace got madder and madder on the other side of the door.

"Open the door, you little shit," he spat at Chris.

"Go fuck your sister," Chris retorted.

"We're gonna to get you Chambers, you little faggot. And your fuckin friends. This is big time, baby," Ace continued to pull at the door and we saw the wood starting to give. I nudged Chris and he nodded.

"Who the fuck are you?" Eyeball asked, looking at me. For the first time, I felt sort of scared.

"Jayna. Jayna Drake," I answered.

"Jayna, if you open this door, I'll forgive you for kickin me. And trust me, you'll want me to forgive you," said Ace. I'll admit, I was tempted. I know Ace looks hot and everything in the movie, but when he's mad, it's quite scary. Replace the word quite with extremely and the word scary with horrifying. But, I couldn't just give up little Gordie and Chris.

"Thanks, but no thanks. I don't sell out my friends, unlike you, you cock-sucking pansy," I told him. That just got him even madder. He started pulling on the door like a mad-man and I got worried that the wood would break.

"Let's go," said Gordie, as if reading my thoughts.

"Yeah, these bastards are stinking up my cloths. Oh, and Ace," said Chris, as he walked up to the window of the door. "You really are an asshole." Then, quite cooly, Chris flipped him the bird. "Suck on this."

We all ran off laughing. We were a couple of blocks away and near the tree house when we heard a snapping sound and Ace yelling.

"Get the other guys and meet back at Irby's!"

We ran to the tree house faster.


	5. playing ball

1When we finally reached the tree house, Vern and Teddy had been there for almost half an hour. They had started up a game of scat, which Teddy was without a doubt conquering.

Chris climbed up the ladder first and did the secret knock. We heard the table being moved aside and the door opened. We all climbed in, me going last. I was met by two surprised faces.

Teddy, who was never one for manners said, "Who the fuck is she?" He didn't say it in a mean way, nor was he angry. He was genuinely curious to who I was. I grinned.

"My name's Jayna. I'm new here and Gordie and Chris are the only people I know. Well, apart from Ace and Eyeball, whom I had the misfortune of meeting. But anyway, you must be Teddy," I said pointing to him. "And you must be Vern." Vern nodded sheepishly.

"You were at my house today, weren't you?" He asked, although it sounded more like a statement. "You saw my brother and his friend. What'd they say to you?"

They all looked at me curiously. I shrugged. I'm so used to guys hitting on me that it doesn't seem like that big of a deal anymore.

"They wanted me to hang out with them and the Cobras. I told them to go fuck themselves and they started to cry." They all laughed and I was immediately accepted into the group. Even Vern loosened up.

"How old are you, anyway?" asked Vern, picking up a new hand that was dealt to him.

"She's 16," answered Chris. I half smiled and crossed my legs. I don't think I need to describe what the tree house looks like. It was exactly the same as in the movie. In face, the guys were all sitting in their appropriate spots. That is, Gordie sat on the bench like thing reading a comic book and the others, including myself, sat around the little box/table.

"Hey, maybe the Cobra won't tool up on us so much when she's around," said Teddy hopefully.

"No, they will," I said simply. "Hey Gordie, pass me a comic book." He threw one over. Some stupid monster comic but hey! How often do you get to read a genuine 50s comic book? Never, that's when.

"Wait, wait! What do you mean? What happened?" Asked Teddy looking quite alarmed. Vern looked at the three of us as we exchanged glances.

"Gordie, you tell 'em. I'm not good at telling stories," I said, going back to my comic book. He sighed and Chris and I laughed. He quickly told them what happened. He ended with Ace yelling to go get the Cobras. When he had finished speaking, Vern looked horrified. Teddy seemed amused that we would be getting into a fight today. Chris noticed Vern's face and punched him playfully on the arm.

"Come on, Verno, they won't be able to find us up here. And, how long could they hold a grudge for anyway? Well, I know Richie'll be pretty sore at me, but I've had worse, I think," he said to Vern.

"No you guys, we have to get out of here, sincerely," it was like he was panting now. I looked over at him.

"Chill, Vern. Chris is right, they don't know where we are. Plus, it's not like any of them will try anything with me here. Isn't the thing like, "I don't hit girls"?" I said casually.

"No, you guys, sincerely. They know where our tree house is. Billy knows. He'll tell them. We have to get the fuck out of here now," Vern was almost in tears now.

"What do you mean, Billy fuckin knows?" asked Teddy, slowly putting down his cards. "I thought this club was supposed to be secret."

"I told him by accident. He asked if we all went to Gordie's house and made out with each other and called us homos and fags so I told him we had a tree fort and he asked where so I told him. We have to leave, right now you guys. Sincerely," Vern's voice was shaking. I took both his shoulders and looked him in the eyes.

"Ok, it's ok, Vern, we're going to leave now, ok? They won't find us, don't worry," I tried to sound calm and reassuring but it was hard. I was suddenly overcome with a wave of fear. I didn't think it mattered anymore to Ace if I was a boy or a girl. I had attacked and embarrassed him. Not much would stop him now.

"Well, where are we supposed to go?" asked Teddy. "We can't fuckin just walk around the town. They'll see us or some shit."

"Teddy's right," said Chris. "They'll be in groups of two or three. The five of us could probably take two but..." his voice trailed off.

"Whatever we do, we better do it fast," said Gordie, staring out the only window. "The Cobras are on the street directly across from us, and Ace is looking up at the fort."

My blood went cold. There was a moment of silence while we all looked at each other and our eyes all showed the same emotion: fear. Then, I spoke.

"Let's get the fuck outta here. Now." We all sprang up and pushed the table aside. None of us bothered to climb down the ladder. We all just jumped and started running. There were some pretty nice climbing trees nearby but this really didn't seem like the time to mention it.

"Hold on, you guys," said Chris suddenly. "I got an idea. Gather up rocks and climb up at tree." He stooped down and began to pick up stones. The other followed. I just stood there.

"No, Chris, no. I know what you're going to do and it's a really bad idea. If you start throwing rock at them from a tree, you'll be cornered. One of them will climb up and drag you down. Trust me, it's a stupid idea." He nodded, dropping the rocks.

"You're right. What do we do, then?" He asked eagerly. I shrugged.

"There's not much we can do. There are five of us and seven of them. They could easily take us in a fight. And they'll probably have weapons," I added thoughtfully.

"She's right, Chris. We don't stand a chance," said Gordie. "Let's just get outta here while we still can." Gordie nodded but Chris looked stubborn.

"We can't just run! Come on! Sure, we won't be able to win against them, but I refuse to go out like a coward. How could you guys just leave out fort, after everything it's been to us. A home away from home. And now you're just going to run away because the bigger kids are a little upset. I say we stay here and face them! I say we stay here and fight!" Silence greeted Chris' big speech.

"Wow," I said. "Oscar worthy, that was." The boys all started to laugh.

"Yeah Chris, you been practicing that?" asked Gordie playfully.

"Yeah, a bit," he said sheepishly.

"Well, girls, if we're gonna go, now should be the time. The Cobras will be here any second. Let's split," Teddy said as he started to run down the opposite hill. We all followed him. We landed in what seemed like a deep forest.

"Where are we?" I asked.

"This is where we play baseball or any other sport we feel like," answered Gordie.

"What, in the forest?"

"No, just keep walking. You'll see it in a second," he answered.

We walked a little past the trees and suddenly found ourselves in an old vacant parking lot. It was crudely set up to resemble a baseball field. I was instantly drawn to it.

"Hey, do you guys think it would be terrible if we started a game?" I asked staring at the field. They just looked at me incredulously.

"Are you serious?" asked Vern.

"Yeah, why not? They'll see that we're not at the tree house and just go off somewhere. C'mon. I call first base," I said as I ran towards to field.

"Jayna, sincerely, what the fuck?" called Vern. The boys were still standing by the sidelines. I reached home plate and picked up the baseball bat and base ball that were just idling around. I threw the baseball in the air and swung the bat. I missed. I could hear the boys laughing like madmen.

"You wet-end!" called Teddy.

"That was just a practice swing," I called angrily, picking up the ball again. "Teddy, go play left field." He smiled and ran out. "Deep left, cocknocker!" I called, getting laughs from all the guys.

"Fuck you!" he called. I laughed.

"Chris," I said, throwing him the ball. "Pitch for me?" He caught it easily and looked at it.

"How did you know I pitched?" he asked. I grinned.

"Guessed. C'mon!" The boys all got into their positions. Chris was pitching and playing second base, Vern had first base and some of right field and Gordie was on third and some of left field. Teddy stood deep center field, in case Chris needed back up.

We were all ready to play when suddenly this scene looked very familiar. It was as if I'd been dreaming this and woken up in the middle of the night, fallen back to sleep and not remembered anything. Then it hit me. I'm unconscious. The ball at the last game of the season. It had hit me on the head and I'd been knocked out. That's why I'm here! That's why I'm in my favourite movie. What the fuck!

"Wait, wait! You guys! I know why I'm here!"

"What are you talking about?" asked Gordie, looking confused. "Didn't you move here?"

"Yes! I mean, no. Well, yeah, I did. Ok, this is going to sound a little weird. We're in a movie. You're all actors. This is actually a movie made in the 80s called Stand by me. I don't know how I got here but the last thing I remember was being hit on the head by a baseball while I was playing. I...think I accidently changed the entire plot of the movie when I went to your house, Vern." I paused for a second then yelled in surprise. "I've changed the entire plot of Stand by me!" Silence.

"Stand by who?" Teddy called.

"Me."

"You?" asked Chris.

"Yes. I mean no. The movie is called Stand by me." Silence again.

"Why would I want to stand by you?" asked Vern.

"What? Oh shut up, Vern. Just pitch, ok Chris?" I said impatiently. Chris looked at me curiously.

"You sure?" he asked.

"Yeah, it's ok. I was just thinking out loud anyway."

"Come on, Chambers, you wet. Hurry up before my clothes go outta style," called Teddy.

"They already are outta style, Teddy," yelled Gordie.

"Eat my shit, Lachance."

Chris started to wind up and I got ready. I smiled as the I felt the familiar grip on the bat and the smell of the game. I could already feel the ball cracking against the bat and seeing it soar, making a perfect arch. I closed my eyes for a second, remembering the feeling.

"Jayna, open your eye, I'm going to throw the ball," yelled Chris. My eyes snapped open and I smirked.

"Come on, I don't got all day, guys," called Vern.

Then Chris threw the ball and oh, what a feeling. I knew it was going to be a perfect hit and I swung the bat with all my might. There was that old cracking sound, of wood and leather. It made me smile so broadly as we all watched the ball sail gracefully over everyone's head. The boys turned to look at me, save Teddy who had started to run blindly after it. I shook my head, laughing at their surprise. Nobody expects me to be able to hit the ball so far, seeing as how I'm pretty tiny for 16. They just assume I'll maybe get a single, if I'm lucky. Some have even been so bold as to call their players in a little closer.

I started to run around the bases, dancing and singing. Then, just to mock the boys, I started to crawl and saw things like, "I'm a little inch worm! Going an inch at a time!" Teddy started to charge back towards me with the ball in his hand. I was only on second base.

"Hold her! Stop her! I could still get her out!" he screamed frantically. The three boys ran towards me and I yelped. I pushed myself off the ground, runner style and started to bolt towards third.

Vern caught me around the middle and pulled me to the ground with him. We were both giggling as Chris and Gordie jumped on us. They held my arms down as I laughed my head off. I pulled free of the boys and touched third base. I was halfway to home plate when the boys caught up with me again. They tried to tackle me again and did, only thing time I managed to keep moving with them trying to pull me back.

Then, my hand was a foot away from the plate and Teddy was at second base. He was really running like the devil was after him. I felt Chris and Gordie pulling at my feet and I surged against them. Suddenly my shoes flew off and my palm slapped home plate just a split second before Teddy pushed the ball into the small of my back.

"Safe!" I screamed and rolled over laughing. Teddy collapsed in a exhaustion and we well just lay on top of each other, panting and laughing. It was contagious. Soon, none of us could breath as we all held our stomachs, exploding with laughter.

We didn't even know how much noise we were making, or the fact that the Cobras weren't that far away. We were just kids, even me, laughing in the dirt about something stupid no one could ever explain. Our loud laughter must have covered up the sound their footsteps made in the grass and twigs walking through the thin forest. The first we knew of them was Ace Merrill's voice say, just a few feet away from us and still getting closer: "Well what the fuck do you know about this?"


	6. Run, goddamn it!

1I stopped myself mid-laugh. Ace and the rest now towered over us, all looking happy and triumphant. I tried to push myself up, only to have a foot push down on my shoulder, pinning me to the ground. I tried to struggle free and eventually, I did. I was suddenly picked up by my arms and held roughly. I turned my head sideways to see Jack Mudgett holding my arms behind my back. He, like Ace and Eyeball, was much taller than me, standing a good 5 inches over me. Plus, he was really strong.

I looked over at the younger boys, only to see no one holding them. I looked at them stupidly before screaming at them to run. They just looked at me, same goes with the elder boys. I started stamping my feet.

"Run, you idiots!" I scream at them. No one moved. I rolled my eyes. Without thinking twice, I elbowed Jack in the gut. He doubled over in pain and I slithered out of his arms. I started running towards the boys, with my arms flailing, again yelling to run, hide, get away from the Cobras. Eventually, they got the hint and we ran. But not for long. I heard the Cobra laugh and start running after us.

"Eyeball, Fuzzy; you get the four-eyes. Vince, Billy, get Chambers. Charlie, get the Lachance kid. Jack, get the fat one. I'll get the girl," I head Ace yell to his cronies.

I'm pretty fast for a kid my size, but I was not match for Ace. He had caught up with me after only a couple of seconds and now ran parallel with me. We must have looked pretty stupid, him running right beside me, slowing getting faster and faster until he was almost ahead of me. I suddenly stopped short and he kept running. I turned to see where the others were.

Teddy had his arms held behind his back and was being dragged by Eyeball. The smaller boy was kicking and swearing to no avail. Eyeball just chuckles and kept dragging the very skinny, short boy. Fuzzy was just lazing around, fully aware that Teddy was no threat at all. I felt my heart sink a little; it was like watching your little brother being beaten up.

Jack Mudgett had Vern's arm behind his back. Vern was kneeling on the ground, whimpering in pain. Jackie laughed as he twisted Vern's arm higher and heard the chubby boy let out a high pitched yelp. My heart sank even lower.

Gordie's head was squished between Charlie's arm and side, in a headlock. Charlie was cackling as Gordie punched and kicked him. He threw Gordie, who landed in a heap on the ground. Charlie walked over to him and pinned him to the ground with a foot. My heart went even lower and I thought it couldn't possibly sink any deeper but then I saw Chris.

Chris was doing the best out of the four. He actually managed to fight off Vince and Billy, until they both figured out it would be better if they attack together rather than one after the other. Billy punched Chris is the stomach and when he doubled over, gasping for breath, Vince knocked him over. Then they pounced on him and started punching him stomach and face. He threw his hands up, trying to protect himself. I started towards him.

"Chris!" I yelled. "I'm coming, Chris, hold on! Get off him you..." That's when Ace tackled me around the waist and I fell to the ground with him on top of me. We rolled over once or twice. I know what you're thinking and yes, it would have be so awesome to have Ace Merrill lying on top of you, except for the fact that he looked like he was going to murder me. His knees where on either side of my torso. I tried to squirm from under him.

"I don't think so," he said, pulling me back under him. I glared up at him. His mouth still had dry blood around it and I could see the cut I had made. I pushed him off me. He only stopped himself falling backwards by putting out his arms behind him. I tried to get away from him to get help Chris but he grabbed my hand and dragged me back under him.

"Sell out my friends, huh?" he asked calmly. "Cock nocking pansy? You kids are grass." He smiled down at me. I tried to struggle, so he tightened his legs around my torso.

"Get the fuck off me, you bastard!" I yelled, trying to punch him. He grabbed my arms and held them together with one hand. I tried kicking him and gave him a good one in the back of the head. He grunted and his angry eyes, got even madder. With his free hand, he pulled out his switchblade knife.

"Do that again, and I'll slice your fuckin head off," he whispered dangerously. He turned his head and called to the others. "Bring them over here, I don't think we're going anywhere soon." I just stared up at the blade. The others boys dragged over my new friends and held them as the tried to break free. I looked over at Chris and saw that he wasn't really putting up much of a struggle and just sort of hung limply.

Ace pulled me to my feet and stood in front of me. He still had the knife in his hand but it was down by his side. I dusted the dirt off my clothes and we looked at each other, face to face. I cooly pushed my hair out of my eyes and glared at him.

"Now what?" I asked.

"Now," he said, walking closer to me. "You die." He lifted the knife in a stabbing motion and brought it towards my chest.

Let me interject here for a second. Now, I'm no stranger to violence. I grew up in a rough part of New York so you either learned to fight or got beaten up. I learned how to fight. I'm not scared of knives, but they do make me uncomfortable. If it had a choice, I would just fight bare knuckle. But I do know how to defend myself against a knife. So when Ace tried to stab me, I easily knocked the knife out of his hand. It's just something you pick up. No biggie.

He looked stunned that he no longer had a knife in his hand. I just smiled.

"I'm a New York girl, born and raiser. Did you really think I'm as innocent as I look?" With that I punched him in the gut. He doubled over and I kneed him in the face. He fell backwards in and clutched his face. He roared with anger and jumped at me. I side-stepped him easily and tripped him. Then I felt a pair of hands grab each of my arms. Eyeball and Fuzzy had grabbed my arms and held me in place. I tried to get free but they tightened their grip. I over at my friends and they all looked pale and scared.

"Don't worry, he won't hurt me," I said confidently. "I mean, what kind of a guy would hit a girl?" I saw Gordie's eye widen and he screeched.

"Jayna, look out!" I turned around and received an eyeful of Ace Merrill's fist. I've been punched before but it didn't hurt as much as that did. I groaned with pain and he slugged me again, this time in the side. I fell onto Eyeball slightly and I heard him snicker. I tried to look up at Ace again and he grinned over me. He punched me in the face again, this time connecting with my jaw. I felt the inside of my cheek cut against my teeth and I spat the blood out of my mouth. He punched me again in the stomach and I slumped forward, Eyeball andFuzzy still holding me up.

Ace knelt down beside me and held up my head with his hand. He looked at my kindly, the way a vet would look at a wounded dog.

"Had enough yet?" he asked sarcastically. I grimaced and spat blood into his face. He wiped it away with and smiled. He pulled back his hand to give me another punch in the face and I closed my eyes tight and turned my head away, waiting for it.

But instead, I heard Gordie's voice.

"Lay one more hand on her and I'll kill you, Ace."


	7. Not if I see ya first

1I opened one eye and saw Ace's fist inches away from my face. Frozen. Mid-punch. I looked pas it and she Ace looking into my eyes but not really seeing me. It was like he was concentration really hard on something. I saw him swallow and as his Adam's apple bobbed up and down, there was something that was sticking against his throat.

Gordie stood with Ace's discarded knife pressed against his throat. Chris was standing with him, ready to fight off any of the other Cobra's if they got to near. Vern and Teddy were scrambling out of their captor's arms to stand with the two best friends.

Gordie's eyes held a vicious fury that I never thought possible for a twelve-year-old-boy. He stared at Ace's profile, daring him to make a wrong move. There was a few moments of silence as they scene was processed by all of us.

"Just give me the knife, Lachance," said Ace softly, trying to be cool and casual. I don't think anyone was buying it.

"Let her go, Ace. I'll drop the knife when you let her go," Gordie said in a slow, deliberate voice. I felt my legs give away suddenly, as if someone had kicked them out from under me. Everyone's eyes flicked towards me. Gordie pressed the knife harder to Ace's throat.

"C'mon kid, just give me the knife. You ain't go the sack to cut a woodchuck."

"Let her go, Ace or I'll kill you, I swear to god." I looked up at Ace and saw a momentary flicker of fear in his eyes. His fist slowly dropped to his side and a smirk appeared across his face. He turned his head slightly so he could see Gordie.

"Come on, Lachance, you must have some of your brother's good sense," he said. I felt my jaw drop. Chris tensed up and looked as if he was going to hit Ace. Teddy's eyes got worried and he glanced at Vern, who looked back at him. Gordie's eyes became two hard rock in his skull. It was like he'd been waiting for this. Waiting for someone to mention Denny, just so he could let his fury out. I watched in silent awe as the words came out of Gordie' mouth.

"Suck my fat one, you cheep dime store hood." There was supposed to be a silence like in the movie but, as it so happened, Teddy was present and let out a yell of excitement.

"Yeah! You tell him Gordie! EEE EEE eee!" he did his mad laugh. Chris shot him a look and he shut up. Ace's face contorted with fury but he managed to compose himself.

"What're you gonna do,kill us all?"

"No, Ace," came the reply from Chris. "Just you." The voice that spoke did not match the lovely human being that stood before me. Chris Chamber's voice had suddenly aged about 25 years. His face had a sad, apologetic look to it as he stood in front of Ace, staring him straight in the eye. It was exactly like in the movie except for one key point. In the movie, I sometimes used to giggle at the intensity on their face. But also, Gordie was the one who said that last line. Here, Chris had said it. And to be honest, I'd never felt more convinced in my life.

Chris hadn't just threatened Ace Merrill. Threats don't normally scare people who are bigger than you but in this case, you could see Ace's mind turning over, wondering if the twelve-year-old in front of him was bluffing or not. It wasn't even what Chris had said, it was the way he'd said it. I don't know if any of you have read the novella that this movie is based on, but the line that Chris says to make Ace stops is said softly with great regret. That's exactly how it was said right here and it sent a shiver up my spine.

Ace let out a breath and stepped away from the knife and Chris. He glared at the two smaller boys as he backed away slowly. The Cobras stared at him stupidly, wondering what their leader was doing.

"We're gonna get you for this," he said, motioning the Cobras to follow him.

"Maybe you will, and maybe you won't," came a retort from Chris. Ace shook his head in disgust.

"Oh we will. We're not gonna forget this if that's what you're thinking," at this point, Eyeball and Billy let me go and I dropped to the floor. They jogged after Ace as he finished his speech. "This is big time baby." He turned and walked away with the rest of the boys. We all watched them disappear into the forest. Chris turned to Gordie.

"Suck my fat one? Whoever told you had a fat one, Lachance?" Gordie grinned.

"Biggest one in four counties," he said. Chris chuckled.

"Yeah." Then he suddenly remembered me lying on the ground and hurried over.

"Jayna, you ok?" he asked, helping me to my feet. I groaned as pressure was one again applied to my stomach. He gingerly held me up as Teddy ran to support my other side.

"Yeah," I grunted. "I'll live." The boys laughed softly. When they stopped, we all just stood there, looking at each other. It was incredible. Even thought no words were spoken, there was a conversation happening. But the silence was eventually broken.

"Gordie," said Chris. "I need to talk to you about something. Alone." he added as we all looked at him to continue. Gordie nodded as if he expected this to happen and followed Chris as he walked away. Teddy did his crazy laugh.

"Homos!" he called after them. They flipped him off and made him laugh some more. I just shook my head and sat down in the dirt. The two boys followed suit and we sat there, staring up at the sky, waiting for Gordie and Chris to come back.

About twenty minutes later, they did come back, both with tear streaked cheeks. It was obvious what had happened.

"You tell him about the milk-money?" I asked Chris. He looked at me sharply but nodded. I think that they had accepted now how much I knew about them. I turned to Gordie. "And did you have your writing epiphany?" He did a one sided smile and nodded as well. They sat down with us.

"I think this is almost over for me," I said suddenly. I was looking up at the sky but I could feel four pairs of eyes on me so I continued. "I'm not from this world. I think I'm going to be going back soon. The movie's nearly over. Well, actually it spans a few days but everything has already happened. But then again, this all depends on if we're following the book or the movie." I knew none of them knew what I was talking about so you'll understand how surprised I was when I heard a voice.

"The movie," said Vern. "I'm pretty sure that this is the movie." I looked at him with confusion and he just shrugged. I gave him a small smile and nodded.

"Yeah, this is defiantly the movie." I suddenly felt a strange sensation wash over me. Like a hook had just been placed in my chest and was pulling me forwards. I tried to pull against it, but it was no use. I turned to the boys.

"Well," I said quickly. "I think this is it. Teddy," he looked up at me. "Stop doing all those stupid train dodging stunts. Start focusing more in school. Trust me, you won't get into the army with bad grades and a shitty reputation," he nodded and I gave him a hug. I turned to Vern. "Verno, stay sweet, ok? Don't let Billy get to you and keep looking for those pennies. They're down there somewhere. And do try harder in school too." I gave him a hug as well. The hook in my chest was getting harder and harder to resist. I sped up.

"Gordie, you are going to be a writer and an amazing one at that. But remember, Chris was the one who was there for you since day one. Don't you guys dare lose each other. You'll both be going to different colleges but stay in touch, even if that driving a thousand miles just for a two hours visit." I held onto him a little longer than the others. I felt like the kid was a little brother or something.

And finally, Chris. I turned to look at those gorgeous blue eyes that make me melt when I see them on the T.V. "Chris," I said. "You're going to end up being a lawyer. Gordie helps you throughout most of school and you get a lot of shit form people but don't let them get to you. Just keep on trying. But, remember this always; whatever you do, never entre a Chicken Delight in the year of 1971, got it?" he nodded. I took a step forward to hug him, but stopped. Something in his eyes stopped me. He swallowed and the thing was gone. Without hesitation, he pulled me towards him in a hug. He was taller than me and if it had been our era, someone might have thought us a couple. We stood for a few seconds and when we pulled apart, he whispered a quick "thank you" to me.

The hook in my chest got so strong that it was pulling me off the ground. I felt my feel lift up and slowly float towards the sky. I flipped over and saw the boys watching me. I smiled at them.

"See ya," I said. They smirked.

"Not if I see ya first," they chorused and laughed. I laughed too and turned back towards the approaching sky. I was moving faster and faster. When I was about to touche the clouds, I rush of air hit me. The clouds turned from a perfect blue sky to the creamy white of a ceiling.


End file.
